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Readers of the US/Israel/Iran recap will find out that Israel could have released top secret military operational information related to Iran on Live TV, as many as President Trump’s comments related to Iran as possible, news about the Strait of Hormuz, as well as other consequences and news from the regions.
Have Israel scuppered US invasion plans?
⚡️ Israeli Channel 14 reporter Shimon Riklin is under investigation for potentially having disclosed classified information live on air on Monday regarding operations tied to the campaign against Iran, including reports about preparations for a possible ground operation at the Isfahan nuclear site.
🔹 Riklin said drills had been conducted involving commando forces storming the site to extract enriched uranium, adding that, based on what he had heard, the material was not buried deep underground in Isfahan, and that ‘once entry is made into the facility, the pipes can be extracted.’
🔹 Israeli military censors have requested the segment to be removed from broadcast platforms, while members of the Yesh Atid party, including Ram Ben-Barak and Elazar Stern, appealed to Boaz Bismuth, the Chairman of the Foreign Affairs and Security committee, to convene an urgent discussion over the publication of “allegedly classified information that could harm the achievements of the campaign in Iran and cause strategic damage to the country’s future.”
⚡️ Hours after the Riklin’s slip on television, the NYT published a report stating that the US and Israel were carrying out their most extensive preparations since the ceasefire took effect amid the possibility of renewed strikes on Iran as early as this week, claiming the Pentagon was also preparing for a potential restart of Operation Epic Fury.
President Trump’s Comments:
⚡️ President Trump told Fortune that the ‘Iranians are screaming all the time,’ stating that they’re ‘dying to sign a deal,’ but they ‘make a deal, and then they send you a paper that has no relationship to the deal you made,” adding that he replies to them: “Are you people crazy?”
⚡️ On Truth Social, President Trump ranted that even if Iran admitted defeat, the so-called ‘fake news media’ of the New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and CNN would still claim Iranian victory, claiming the media had lost their way, while heading into a 50-day ceasefire that followed a 40-day war.
⚡️ President Trump told the New York Post he wasn’t open to any concessions for Tehran after receiving their latest response aimed at ending the war, and added that Iran knew ‘what’s going to happen soon,’ then when asked about earlier remarks suggesting he could accept a 20-year moratorium on uranium enrichment, Trump replied: I can’t really talk to you about it, too many things are happening, but I’m not open to anything right now.”
🔹 Trump also told the NYP he wasn’t ‘frustrated’ with Iran but warned that Tehran understood the US was capable of escalating further pressure: “I can tell you they want to make a deal more than ever, because they know we’re – what’s going to be happening soon,” he said, and when asked whether Iran were trying to ‘wait out’ Washington on nuclear talks and reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, Trump replied: “I hadn’t heard that.”
⚡️ Around the same time as the NYP publication, another Truth Social appeared, in which the President claimed a request was made by the Emir of Qatar Tamir bin Hamad Al Thani, the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud, and the President of the United Arab Emirates Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nayan had asked for tomorrow’s scheduled US attack to be postponed.
🔹 Further to the name drops of the Middle East’s most influential leaders, Trump also claimed the three countries had said that a deal would be made soon which would be acceptable to the United States, including no nuclear weapons, which Trump claimed led to instructions to call off the strike with Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Dan Caine.
🔹 However, Trump’s post on social media came only a day after both the UAE and Saudi Arabia were attacked by three drones each from alleged Iranian proxies in Iraq, as well as revelations recently that both the Emirates and the Kingdom were involved in attacks on Iranian islands and territory during the war, and continued rhetoric between the UAE and Iran in relation to continued conflict after the war with US, which gives much doubt to President Trump’s alleged claims on Truth Social.
⚡️ Speaking later while introducing the US government’s drug pricing website, President Trump initially reiterated his statements made previously to the NYT, and when asked more about the ‘big discussions’ with Iran, replied that it was a very positive development, but didn’t know whether it would amount to anything: “We’ve had enough periods of time where we had, we thought, pretty much getting close to making a deal and it didn’t work out, but this is a little bit different.”
🔹 Trump continued: “I was called by these three countries plus others, and they’re dealing directly with our people and, right now, Iran,” saying that there seemed to be a very good chance of working something out: “If we can do that without bombing the hell out of them, I’d be very happy,” he said.
🔹 President Trump added: “We’ve taken a country that was going to have a nuclear weapon, and we’ve virtually destroyed its military – we could leave right now and it would take them 25 years to rebuild, and the last thing they’re thinking about, is nuclear, now they have to put that in writing.”
Iranian’s Official Updates & Responses:
⚡️ President Masoud Pezeshkian said on X that dialogue didn’t mean surrender, so although Iran entered the dialogue with dignity, authority, and the preservation of the nation’s rights, under no circumstances would it retreat from the legal rights of the people of the country.
⚡️ Senior member of the Iranian parliament Mohsen Rezaei said that the US set a deadline for a military strike and then cancels it ‘itself,’ in hopes it would make the Iranian nation and officials surrender, but the iron fist of the Iranian forces and the Iranian nation would force the US to retreat and surrender.
⚡️ Foreign Minister Esmail Baghaei criticised German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Germany for being hypocritical on social media, stating that attacks on Iranian nuclear facilities failed to provoke condemnation, only excuses and justifications.
🔹 Baghaei said that when a “supposed false-flag operation takes place – one whose authorship even the UAE has refused to officially attribute to Iran – those same voices who suddenly invoke the solemn language of international law and regional security.
🔹 The FM Spokesperson stressed that if attacks on nuclear facilities threatened the people of the region, this principle should be applied equally to all stated, and not just when it suits the West’s political opportunism.
Negotiation News:
⚡️ Before President Trump’s claim of Middle Eastern involvement to prevent attacks, multiple conflicting reports surfaced throughout the day in relation to the negotiations and mediation, including Reuters citing a Pakistan source saying that officials had passed on an Iranian proposal to the US aimed at ending the war, adding that there wasn’t much time and that both sides ‘kept changing their goalposts.’
🔹 Tasnim reported that the US agreed in a new negotiation draft to temporarily waive oil sanctions on Iran during the course of ongoing talks, claiming the proposal would involve temporary OFAC waivers rather than a full removal of sanctions, but added that Iran were still insisting all sanctions be permanently lifted as part of any agreement, while Washington was only offering only temporary exemptions until a final deal is reached, leaving both sides at a stalemate.
⚡️ An Iranian source told Reuters that the US had shown limited flexibility over Iran’s nuclear program and sanctions relief, stating that Iran’s revised proposal included demands for a permanent ceasefire, the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, and postponing detailed nuclear negotiations until later phases in the tanks (something Iran has always called for), while Washington proposal to unfreeze just 25% of Iranian assets in stages doesn’t come close to matching Tehran’s demands to full access to its funds and the lifting of all sanctions.
⚡️ Meanwhile, a source close to the Iranian negotiations told Tasnim News that Iran would not abandon its firm and principled positions on ending the war and securing the rights of the Iranian nation, stating that Iran’s blocked assets must definitely be returned to the Iranian people transparently and definitively, adding that paper promises were of no use.
🔹 The source said that despite some promises, there was a disagreement about the return of blocked funds, however, despite talk of something called a ‘development and reconstruction fund,’ the Americans are far from Iran’s demands regarding its amount and some other issues, adding: “The Americans must understand that Iran will under no circumstances agree to end the war in exchange for nuclear commitments.”
⚡️ Axios and Barak Ravid reported that the White House didn’t view Iran’s new proposal as meaningful or sufficient for an agreement, claiming they were told by a senior US official that the proposal only contained minor changes compared to earlier versions.
🔹 While the proposal expanded on the language about Iran not pursuing a nuclear weapon, it allegedly still lacked detailed commitments on suspending uranium enrichment or surrendering existing stockpiles of highly enriched uranium, and the official also pushed back on reports that Washington had agreed to ease sanctions, allegedly saying that ‘no sanctions relief will happen for free’ without reciprocal steps from Tehran.
🔹 The official said: “We are really not making a lot of progress, we need some real, sturdy, and granular conversation,” he said, adding: “If that’s not going to happen, we will have a conversation through bombs, which will be a shame.”
⚡️ Israel Hayom claim they were told by a source familiar with US planning that another American strike on Iran was imminent, adding that Israeli security officials also said preparations for a renewed round of attacks had been completed, with the operation set to last several days and target sites that President Trump had previously avoided striking despite Israeli insistence.
⚡️ Warmongering continued from Israel Channel 13, claiming the US and Israel were on peak alert for a possible resumption of war, with security discussions at the prime minister’s office mirroring the eve of previous military campaigns, adding that PM Netanyahu held a 45-minute call with President Trump but still couldn’t reach a final decision leaving Israel waiting for the green light.
⚡️ Al Jazeera claimed a US source had stated that President Trump’s patience was running thin due to the lack of progress with Iran, noting Iran had days and not weeks in order to make concessions to break the deadlock, adding that Trump was leaning toward military action unless he got something solid from Iran within days.
⚡️ President Trump told the NYP that he wasn’t open to any concessions for Tehran after he had received their latest response on Monday night aimed at ending the war and added: “Iran knows what’s going to be happening soon.”
⚡️ Following President Trump’s press conference that had released more details about the situation in the Middle East, Axios reported a US official warned that if Iran didn’t shift its position on its most recent proposals sent this Monday, the US would have no choice but to continue negotiating through bombs, noting there was a unified message from Doha, Abu Dhabi and Riyadh asking Trump to give negotiations a chance, or “we will all pay the price for it.”
⚡️ Russian Foreign Minister released a statement about the situation in the Middle East, stressing that Iran has the full right to enrich uranium for peaceful purposes, while the issue of the Bushehr nuclear power plant concerns only Russia and Iran, adding that Russia wasn’t seeking to interfere in negotiations, but hoped the negotiations would succeed, and Moscow would support any solution the US and Iran were prepared to accept.
⚡️ Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan was welcomed to Germany by Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul to discuss the situation in the Middle East, following which they released a joint press conference, in which Wadephul stressed that Iran must no longer pose a threat to its neighbours or be allowed to acquire nuclear weapons: “Its ballistic missile program and its policies that fuel instability and conflict across the region must be stopped,” the minister added.
🔹 Fidan said he didn’t see a problem with the Iranian side agreeing to comply with the necessary conditions in the nuclear negotiations: “There are disagreements about what will be received in return, how and in what sequence it will be received, and what additional conditions will accompany it,” the FM pointed out, adding that there were differences of opinion among some parties on those issues.
Strait of Hormuz News:
⚡️ For anyone wishing to follow the latest news in the Strait of Hormuz, the Persian Gulf Strait Authority, responsible for the movement and safe transit of vessels through the vital waterways, have launched an official account on the X social media platform.
🔹 On their first posts, the account represented the new government body and mechanism designed to formalise and regulate Iranian control over the Strait of Hormuz, stating that ships seeking transit must obtain authorisation through an official permit system managed via email,
Accepted vessels will receive mandatory transit rules and ‘safe passage’ instructions that need to be followed to enter the Strait, but the IRGC Navy warned ships remained within an Iranian-designated ‘approved corridor’ or face a ‘firm response.’
⚡️ An Iranian oil tanker under US sanctions that was located off the coast of India two weeks ago has now docked at Iran’s Kharg Island, Fars News Agency stated, noting the LPG tanker managed to pass through the US blockade zone without being detected before entering Iranian waters.
⚡️ US Central Command said they were continuing to enforce the US Naval blockade, having turned around 4 tankers had been turned around within 27 hours, taking the total to 85 Iranian cargo vessels turned around and 4 disabled to ensure compliance.
⚡️ Despite previous claims that an LPG tanker made it to Kharg Island, Bloomberg stated that Iran’s main oil export hub on the island had gone at least ten days without seeing visible tanker loadings, citing satellite imagery that showed no large ocean-going tankers were seen at the island’s export berths since 8 May, claiming that Iran had instead shifted exports to the Jask oil terminal closer to the entrance of the Strait of Hormuz.
⚡️ Due to the blockades in the Middle East, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent extended a previously cancelled sanction relief notice for the sale of Russian oil that is stranded at sea, in a measure intended to stabilise crude markets, support energy-vulnerable countries, and reduce China’s ability to stockpile discounted oil, adding that Washington would work with affected countries to issue specific licences where needed.
⚡️ FM Spokesperson revealed that technical teams had met from Iran and Oman to coordinate on the Strait of Hormuz, adding that Iran has no hostility towards any country in the region, including the UAE, because the countries are neighbours, and Tehran sought peace.
🔹 Baghaei said the US presence put the region at constant risk, claiming Iran were ‘outraged’ by countries that put their territories, resources and airspace at the disposal of the ‘aggressors,’ and no matter how much the US push in negotiations, Iran would not raise the issue of uranium enrichment, because Iran’s principles are taken very seriously during the process.
🔹 Claiming the US are behaving like sea pirates, the draft resolutions in the Security Council regarding Iran and the Strait of Hormuz were blatant attempts to undermine the current situation and didn’t mention the ‘aggressors,’ which made it completely unacceptable.
🔹 Every violation of international humanitarian law, such as the Minab School incident, had been documented and registered in international courts after being thoroughly catalogued.
🔹 New arrangements set for the Strait of Hormuz will remain in place to ensure safe passage and preserve Iran’s sovereignty and natural rights, adding the Strait will not return to pre-war status, Iran are not afraid of any threats, and believed the US and Israel were making further plans for confrontation.
⚡️ Iranian news channel IRIB reported that 1500 vessels were in the Strait of Hormuz and awaiting permission from the Navy, who had now been told to monitor frequency channel 16, and hear the message: “This is the Persian Gulf, the path of power to pass through the Strait of Hormuz; obtain permission.”
⚡️ Reliable news sources allegedly reported a massive explosion at the entrance to the Bab el-Mandab Strait near the Red Sea on Sunday night, reported IRIB, who claimed that it was worth noting the since of maritime news agencies and Western news networks in reporting the explosion.
G7 Finance Ministers’ Meeting:
⚡️ Following a meeting of the G7 finance ministers in Paris on Monday, convened to confront the widening economic fallout from the Iran War, the German Finance Minister called the conflict ‘a serious threat to the global economy,’ according to multiple reports.
🔹 Germany’s Klingbeil urged that everything must be done to end the war and ensure free shipping, while France’s Lescure aimed for a ‘common toolbox’ for market disruptions, and US Treasury Bessent said he would push allies to tighten sanctions to starve Iran’s financing.
🔹 The global bond markets were hammered ahead of the talks, with US 30-year yields hitting 5.121%, UK 30-year gilts traded near 1998 highs, and Japan’s 10-year yield climbed to around 2.71% – as energy costs fuelled fears of persistent inflation and tighter central banks.
🔹 Capital Economics warned that if the Strait was to remain closed through year-end and oil remained around $150 a barrel, inflation could surge to near 10% in the UK and euro zone, pushing rates back to recent peaks and triggering a global recession.
Other News:
⚡️ Pakistan deployed around 8,000 troops, fighter jets, drones, and air defence systems to Saudi Arabia under a mutual defence pact during the Iran war, which included JF-17 Thunder fighter jets, two squadrons of drones, and Chinese-made HQ-9 air defence systems operated by the Pakistan military personnel in the country, reported Reuters, adding the force is combat-ready and could potentially expand to as many as 80,000 troops if necessary.
⚡️ An Israeli Channel 12 media report attempted to claim that renewed fighting was being hinted because Israel had received messages from the US stating that the dozens of refuelling aircraft currently stationed at Ben Gurion Airport are expected to remain there throughout the year.
🔹 However, the report failed to mention that in April, thousands of holiday makers due to vacation in Eilat, Israel, were forced to cancel plans at the last minute because the Pentagon had rented an hotel until the later part of the year, while other reports also suggested Israel had offered the US the opportunity have having a permanent base in the country as Iran looks to push the United States Armed Forces out of the Middle East.
⚡️ Sirens sounded around Iran’s Qeshm Island while air defences were activated Mehr News Agency reported, later followed up by Tasnim News confirming that the defences were triggered by small drones flying into the island’s airspace.
⚡️ Reuters reported that the war with Iran has cost global companies at least $25 billion and climbing, with at least 279 international firms raising prices, cutting production, suspending dividends, halting share buybacks, forcing employee leave, or imposing fuel surcharges to absorb the blow.,
🔹 Airlines have been hit the hardest, the report said, losing nearly $15 billion due to the jet fuel price doubling, while Toyota alone faced an estimated $4.3 billion in damages.
🔹 Petrochemical, automotive and consumer goods sectors are among the worst affected, as experts warn continued price hikes could fuel global inflation and shatter fragile consumer confidence worldwide.
⚡️ New York Times said that because Iran’s missiles were launched from underground facilities carved into granite mountains, it proved difficult for the US aircraft to destroy, so they resorted to collapsing and buying entrances rather than digging them outright, but meant it was easy for Iran to excavate them since.
🔹 Iranian commanders also allegedly had possibly Russian assistance to study US fighter jet and bomber plane flight patterns to exploit their predictably, noting the downing of the F-15E in April and damage sustained by an F-35 from ground fire served as warning signs that US tactics had become too routine, allowing Iran to defend against them more effectively.
🔹 Most significantly, a US military official warned that while five weeks of intensive bombing may have killed several Iranian leaders and commanders, the war has left a more hardened and resilient adversary.
